If last year's awards were about how well banks kept a firm course in stormy times, The Banker's 11th Bank of the Year Awards - in association with Western Gulf Advisory - revealed quality as never seen before by the judges.

The quality of the entries for The Banker's 11th annual global banking awards was the highest ever received. Banks were asked to provide a comprehensive range of data and information - including growth and performance figures - as well as leading initiatives taken over the past 12 months, such as technology upgrades, mergers and product launches.

Many banks went the extra mile in describing in great detail their strategy and performance in a bid to win one of the country awards or, even better, a regional or global award. This made the judging process even more challenging than usual and our editorial team invested many hours of many days in reaching what they believe - and hopefully the market agrees - is the fairest of outcomes.

Altogether we made awards in a record 149 countries, picking the winners from more than 500 entries. As there are 192 or so countries in the world (the exact number depends on how and who you count), The Banker's awards are well on the way to displaying total global coverage.

This year's global winner is Standard Chartered, a bank which itself has extensive worldwide operations covering Africa, the Middle East and Asia. CEO Peter Sands says that the bank aspires to be "the world's best international bank".

As well as the global and the five regional awards, we also gave awards for the best bank at cash management and the best bank for security services. There is also an award for financial inclusion. This attracted some 70 entries, proving what a hot topic this is among bankers.

The Banker's awards continue to be the premier industry competition for recognition in banking. Congratulations to all our winners.

The Bracken Award

Winners at The Banker Awards will receive a prestigious Bracken award, named after Brendan Bracken, the founding editor of The Banker in 1926 and the chairman of the modern-day Financial Times from 1945 to 1958. Brendan Bracken epitomises the global spirit, vision and integrity of The Banker and FT Group, and the winning of a Bracken is a fitting accolade for the performances of the world's top financial institutions.

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